Styrofoam is a type of foam plastic made of polystyrene foam, which is an extensively used but non-degradable man-made product. As a result, recycling of STYROFOAM (polystyrene foam) has become a critical issue to countries around the world.
In Taiwan, existing commercial method for recycling STYROFOAM (polystyrene foam) involves chopping, cleaning, heat treating, and drying STYROFOAM (polystyrene foam) to obtain polystyrene particles, which can be processed to form plastic products such as toys, penholders, flower pots, camera cases, and video cassettes, or be used as synthetic construction materials.
However, heat treating of STYROFOAM (polystyrene foam) generates toxic gases such as dioxin and may irreversibly harm the environment if the toxic gases are not treated properly.
Presently, many research institutions have been focusing on biodegradation of STYROFOAM (polystyrene foam). Technically, STYROFOAM (polystyrene foam) can be degraded by internal bacteria of Tenebrio molitor. However, such studies are still under development. In order to screen out STYROFOAM (polystyrene foam) degrading strains, weeks of observation on loss of STYROFOAM (polystyrene foam) mass or change in STYROFOAM (polystyrene foam) structure are required after collection of the strains. Therefore, there is a need for a quick strain screening method to improve efficiency of studies in the field and development of related technologies.
Thus, the present invention provides a quick screening method for microbial strains and a culture medium for the quick screening method to solve above-mentioned problems.